Understanding the Organic Consumer through Narratives: an International Comparison

Summary

Consumer narratives drawing on life history, events and influences are used to explain evolving consumer behaviour with regard to purchasing and consumption of organic products. Triangulated qualitative interviews, involving 54 principal participants in major and average sized cities in Denmark, the UK and Italy form the empirical basis of the study, combined with shopping trip observation and supplementary interviews. The research uses Gardner’s (2004) concept of ‘change of mind’ as a starting point for analysis. While cultural and geographical contexts vary across countries, a key finding is that consumer behaviour co-evolves with market development. The study concludes that potential future marketing strategies must distinguish carefully between strongly committed and occasional consumers of organic products.